Stories from Monday, August 17, 1998

Rachel Bartels, 6, looked for a backpack for school at Target with her mother, Barbara Bartels of Whitewater. Retailers report denim items top the list of back-to-school purchases. American Eagle reports it can't keep enough of the drawstring denim wide legs in stock, and The Buckle reports sales "through the roof" with Tommy Hilfiger and Tommy Girl topping the list...

The opening of area schools this week means an increase in foot and vehicle traffic, and drivers need to be on the lookout for children. School administrators and transportation officials said both children and adults should take extra precautions near schools and school buses because of additional traffic. ...

Librarians. They work in an environment that revolves around helping other people read. From the well-worn paperbound classics to the electric phrases pulsing out of today's computer screens, words are everywhere a librarian goes, filling bookshelves, magazine racks and newspaper folios...

The eight finalists in the local Kodak International Newspaper Snapshot Awards will be notified today. Everyone else will learn of the judges' final decision Sunday when the KINSA keepsake edition is published in the Southeast Missourian. The special section will highlight the eight finalists along with 100 other photographs...

JACKSON -- At 9 a.m. on a September day in 1908, every whistle and bell in the city sounded to herald the beginning of the first Jackson Homecomers. More than 15,000 people, most of whom came by wagon and train, attended the event begun as an annual reunion of those with ties to the area...

Many of the players negotiating an increase in Cape Girardeau's hotel-motel tax to be put on the Nov. 3 ballot say they like the idea of Southeast Missouri State University developing the old St. Vincent's Seminary into a campus for the arts. But they're keeping awfully quiet about what form that tax increase, which will help pay for the campus, might take...

The Cape Girardeau Safe House for Women will purchase an eight-unit apartment complex in the city with a $215,000 grant received through the Affordable Housing Program. The purchase should be complete in the early fall, shelter director Dena Pehlman said. The apartment complex should be ready for occupancy by spring after needed renovations are made...

My friend Tina has a problem. Her ex, Pookie, keeps calling, seeking a reconciliation. Tina, who has taken to playing the field energetically since she and Pookie hit the Splitsville city limits, is a mite confused. "He dumped me!" she wailed indignantly over the telephone. "I'm the one who's supposed to be begging to come back. HE dumped ME!"...

A WHILE back I called Speak Out to voice my opinion about people who dump their unwanted animals out in the country. Since then, there was a letter to the editor from someone connected with the Humane Society. I agree with what she had to say about people taking responsibility for their animals and finding them a good home. ...

Thoughts of the Big One occurring any day soon along the New Madrid earthquake fault may no longer be on the minds of most folks, but scientists tell us a devastating earthquake will occur along the fault that stretches through Southeast Missouri and Southern Illinois...

Much has been said about the devastating Mississippi River flood of 1993, but the real stories of the flood and many before it were told at a recent reunion of Cape Girardeans who had had enough: They sold their homes and moved out of the river's floodplain...

To the editor: When I received my telephone bill this money, there was a $135 charge for long-distance calls. I was billed for 49 calls made to 15 states over a period of 24 days -- calls I did not make. I was billed by a billing service I had never heard of before which told me to call a long-distance company I had never heard of before. ...

7:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 17 City Hall Public hearing -- Hearing to consider the request for a special use permit for the establishment and operation of a day care facility in a R-3 (general residential) district at 1321 E. Main St. as requested by Don Harris...

Monday, Aug. 17 7:30 p.m. Study session 5 p.m. Public hearing -- A public hearing on improving Hopper Road from Kage Road west for 339 feet. Consent ordinances -- Repeal Sections 2-77 to 2-79 and adopt Sections 2-76 to 2-83 of the city code relating to conflicts of interest...

HOUMA, La. -- The Heartland Nationals, a local fast-pitch girls softball team made up of players ages 13 through 15, can now call itself national champions. The Nationals won the title in the Babe Ruth Girls Softball National Tournament 13-15 division by rallying past Terre Bonne, La., 7-6 here Sunday afternoon...

The Delta Queen is expected to dock at Riverfront Park today at noon. The boat, owned by the Delta Queen Steamboat Company, will leave at 5 p.m. The Cape Girardeau Convention and Visitors Bureau will welcome the boat's visitors to the city. Arrival time can change. For information, call the CVB at 335-1631...

CHAFFEE -- John M. Spooler, 87, of Chaffee died Sunday, Aug. 16, 1998, at the family home. He was born Dec. 30, 1910, at Glennon, son of Joseph and Elizabeth Schulte Spooler. On Feb. 18, 1936, he and Myrtle Mansell were married. Spooler was a retired farmer...

Amy Elise Roggow, 2, of Cape Girardeau died Friday, Aug. 14, 1998, at Children's Hospital in St. Louis. She was born Dec. 21, 1995, in West Plains, daughter of Rodney M. and Karen S. Goetzinger Roggow. She was a member of St. Vincent de Paul Catholic Church in Cape Girardeau...

SIKESTON -- Imo Throop, 78, of Sikeston died Sunday, Aug. 16, 1998, at her home. She was born July 10, 1920, at Appleton, Ark., daughter of John and Etta Wiley Hill. She and Loren E. Throop were married on Feb. 21, 1937, at Matthews. He died June 8, 1986...

ADVANCE -- Robert "Bob" Mashek, 89, of Advance died Saturday, Aug. 15, 1998, at Parkland Health Center in Farmington. He was born Oct. 20, 1908, at Advance, son of Frank and Mary Sedlac Mashek. He and Wanda Opal Sitz were married in November 1934 at Bell City. She died April 10, 1994...

Monday, Aug. 17, 6 p.m. Vocational Building -- 301 N. Clark St. Action Items: -- Action policy update, second reading/adoption. -- Approve consent agenda items. -- Change board meeting dates for January and February. -- Approve certified salary schedule...

Brenda and Ken Phelps, the new owners of The Way Christian bookstore, plan to enhance the store's music section. Brenda Phelps said the store at 110 S. High in Jackson will have more top 10 Southern gospel recordings. The Phelps became owners July 20...

This "Financial Focus" column is prepared by Edward Jones Investments, headquartered in St. Louis. Jones includes branches throughout the nation, including Cape Girardeau and Jackson. Whenever you open an account or purchase a security, you must decide how your account should be registered. Registration determines the ownership of your assets and how they will be handled after your death...

Cato, a women's apparel specialty store, celebrated its grand opening Thursday in Cape Girardeau. The 51-year-old chain, based in Charlotte, N.C., has 700 stores. It carries junior and missy sizes and a complete selection of plus sizes. The 4,800-square-foot store at 2135 William in the Town Plaza Shopping Center stocks competitively priced casual and dress clothing. ...

Kathy Webb has been promoted to accounts payable specialist at Dana Corp.'s Spicer Axle Division, 2075 Corporate Circle. Webb joined Dana in June 1993 as a cell technician in Department 500. She is a recent graduate of Southeast Missouri State University with a bachelor's degree in business administration...

Auto Tire and Parts, a Cape Girardeau-based firm that serves 20 communities in the tri-state area, recently opened a new store in Ullin, Ill. Also, the firm, which stocks automotive, agricultural and truck parts and DuPont paint products, was recently named one of the top 100 auto parts businesses in the nation by Automotive Marketing magazine...

A videotape of a U.S. Justice Department conference titled "Gangs, Community and Corrections" will be shown at the Southwestern Bell TeleCommunity Center at Three Rivers Community College in Poplar Bluff tomorrow from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. To register for the event or for more information call the Southwestern Bell TeleCommunity Center at (573) 778-0000...

Spartech Corp., a leading producer of engineered thermoplastic materials, has announced the introduction of five new thermoplastic sheet and rollstock products. These products are called alloy plastics. For more information contact Spartech at (888) 721-4242 or on the Web at http://www.spartech.com/...

The new Dollar General Store at 724 Broadway is scheduled to open today. The 8,000-square-foot building will replace the 5,000-square-foot former Dollar General Store at 20 N. Spanish. The new store has a larger clothing inventory and additional food items. Also, it has a much larger parking lot, which can accommodate 30 vehicles...

Meggie and Mike's, which sells new and used clothing and baby equipment, has moved to 48 S. Plaza Way from 83 S. Plaza Way. The new building, which Meggie and Mike's occupied July 15, is about twice as large as the previous one. The business has increased its inventory and added a washer and dryer to launder on-site all clothing it purchases...

The 37th annual Delta Center Field Day will be held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sept. 2 in Portageville. There will be tours covering cotton, soybeans, weed control and new technologies. On Sept. 16 there will be a cotton variety field tour in Portageville. Lunch will be served at the Delta Center. Times and location will be announced...